Chelsea already have one Ecuador star in their ranks with brilliant midfielder Moises Caicedo. According to reports, the Blues are now checking on international teammate Joel Ordonez, too.
Moises Caicedo, 23, belongs in the conversation as one of the best defensive midfielders on the planet because he’s been performing at such a high level for over a year now.
The good news for Blues supporters is that Chelsea want to reward Caicedo with a contract extension to keep him at Stamford Bridge.
Ecuador, who have qualified for the 2026 World Cup, appear to have a golden generation of players right now. Club Brugge defender Joel Ordonez, 21, is one of the exciting youngsters who plays for the South American giants. It’s intriguing to hear that he’s also on Chelsea’s radar.
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Chelsea scouts check on Joel Ordonez
Journalist Simon Phillips reports via Substack that Chelsea are still working on signing a new central defender and could attack the market when the transfer window reopens in January.
He reports that Club Brugge star Ordonez was scouted by Chelsea during the recent September international break. In fact, Stamford Bridge officials had eyes on the young centre-half last season as well.
If Chelsea watched Ordonez this month on the international stage, they will have witnessed him help Ecuador draw against Paraguay and beat Argentina in World Cup qualifiers.
| Fixture | Minutes played | Accurate passes | Duels won | Dribbled past | Match rating |
| Ecuador 1-0 Argentina | 90 | 62/66 (94%) | 4 | 0 | 7.2 |
| Paraguay 0-0 Ecuador | 90 | 29/33 (89%) | 2 | 0 | 7.2 |
Even though he’s a centre-back by trade, he does have the versatility to cover at right-back, which is something we suspect Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca would like.
Moises Caicedo massively approves of Joel Ordonez
If Chelsea want extra information on Ordonez, they can ask Caicedo because the duo have played together for Ecuador in the past couple of years.
Back in February 2025, The Chelsea Chronicle were told that Caicedo has voiced his opinion that Ordonez is good enough as Chelsea watched him earlier this year.
With Blues centre-back Levi Colwill sidelined with an ACL injury, it will be interesting to see if the club go out and sign a new defender midway through this season. Ordonez, who’s playing Champions League football with Club Brugge, ticks a lot of boxes as a transfer profile for Chelsea.
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